


aces wild

by freudiancascade



Category: The Magnus Archives (Podcast)
Genre: Asexual Jonathan Sims, F/M, Internalized Acephobia, coming out -- awkward ace edition!, georgie won’t stand for anybody being mean to jonathan (not even jonathan himself), pansexual georgie barker (implied), rated 'm' for discussion of sex and partial nudity, tbh they're the dream team
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-14
Updated: 2019-02-14
Packaged: 2019-10-09 22:26:54
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,079
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17413706
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/freudiancascade/pseuds/freudiancascade
Summary: A break-up, of sorts, and the affirmation of both a friendship and identity.





	aces wild

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Jain](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jain/gifts).



* * *

"Oh, _lord._ " Jon drew in a deep breath. And then he made a strangled sound like he'd just been punched in the throat, both his arms snapping down to his sides as his hands knotted together in his lap.

"What --" Georgie flicked her gaze briefly down to her now-naked chest, alarm crossing her face. "Jon, _is there something wrong with them_?"

"Ah, no, it's -- uh, they seem to be perfectly serviceable, congratulations."

"Well, that's the least flattering thing anyone's ever said about my breasts." Georgie lifted an eyebrow. "Kudos."

Jon broke eye contact first, staring sheepishly down at his fingernails. “I didn’t think it was _that_ bad.” He was looking anywhere, really, rather than directly at Georgie.

“Yeah, no, it was.” She sighed and began fussing with her shirt, shrugging first one arm and then the other back into it. "You _really_ don't want to do this, huh."

If Jon had turned any redder he probably would have begun to spontaneously combust, sputtering, "I don't -- I -- well -- oh for heaven's sake, Georgie, I don't -- well, I don't think it's just _you_ , if that helps."

She tipped her head, hands stilling against a button. "Hang on. Are you gay, Jon?"

"No!" he blurted, and then, "I mean. Not that there's anything wrong with that, I'm just not -- I think I'm not _anything_ , really. It's." Jon stopped abruptly, making a low frustrated sound under his breath and a floaty hand gesture. He did seem like he wanted to climb out of his skin and escape out the nearest window, or for the worn carpet of Georgie's bedroom to open up and swallow him whole; he settled for a mumbled, "I'm not certain. I've just never especially wanted any of -- _this_. With. Well. Anybody. Of any gender. And I doubt I ever will."

"But you wanted to experiment?"

"Not exactly. I thought I could. Well. Endure it."

"Hold up. Whoever made you think you had to do anything like this when you clearly don't want to?" Georgie settled back, her legs crossed under her. She was flushed, too, dragging her hair out through the collar of her blouse so it settled around her shoulders once more. "Tell me. I want to find them, and then I want to fight them."

"That will hardly be necessary," Jon retorted, still studiously avoiding eye contact. "Unless you want to punch the entirety of heterosexual society in the face."

"That's not the worst idea I've ever heard." Georgie folded her arms.

A faint grin crossed his face, just for a moment. "If anybody could do it, it'd be you."

"Oh, don't look at me like that. You're still an absolute idiot. You should have _said_ something weeks ago, Jon."

"I didn't want to -- well. I didn't want to hurt you. Even if I don't -- can't -- return those feelings, I'm still very -- well, you're still -- I like you! I just don't think I can feel _that_ way about people. Because if I could, I don't see how it'd be possible to _not_ fall horribly in love with you. It genuinely isn't anything you've done. I look at you and I know I should be head over heels!”

Georgie nodded sagely. “Because I'm a babe. With _fantastic_ breasts, for the record.”

“Exactly! I just. I can't do it! And I don't think any part of me wants or needs to feel those things to be whole. I'm -- I'm sorry, Georgie, I've never talked about this out loud to anybody before, I’m not exactly in the habit of --” He cut himself off and then, unable to sit with the incomplete sentence, added a muttered, “sharing.”

Georgie frowned. “I noticed. You know, I’m no shrink, but you’d probably feel a lot better if you kept fewer things bottled up.”

“Fine! I kept thinking maybe this entire...matter...would sort itself out when I got there, like a hill that gets flatter as you climb it, and maybe the switch would suddenly flip and those feelings would be right where they’re supposed to be! But it hasn’t, and they’re not. Maybe there's just something wrong with me.” Jon’s laugh was hollow and bitter as he shrugged. “Maybe I'm broken."

"Jon. It's okay. You can take a breath. No, I'm serious, please take a breath, you're starting to worry me, and if you make yourself pass out I'm not going to help you. Listen to me, Jonathan Sims: first off, I don't think there's anything wrong with you. Second, I'm not going to wither away in despair over not being attractive to one person. And third, I was trying to figure out how to break it to you gently that you're not entirely _my_ romantic type, either. And now I don't have to! We're all good!"

"This is exactly what I'm saying, I'd never want to keep you from all the people you deserve to have love you, and -- wait, I'm what?"

Georgie just laughed. "My heart will go on. Promise."

Jon rose from the bed, scratching the back of his neck with an awkward hand. "I should. Well. Leave, then. I'm. Uh. Sorry for bothering you, and wasting your time, Georgie. I'm. I truly am."

She rolled her eyes. "Oh, don't slink away with your tail between your legs like that. People can still be friends even if they don't want to sleep together. Besides, the Admiral would never forgive me if I chased you out of his life." She shook her head. "Never seen him take to a person like he has to you, and he's a great judge of character."

"You don't need to let me down gently." Jon drew himself up to his full height, all gangly limbs and wounded pride. "I'm perfectly adept at coping with rejec --"

"Nonsense. Put on the kettle while you're up, open the door to let the cat back in, and then come back and I'll tell you about the time the Admiral saved me from getting roped into a pyramid scheme."

"Georgie, you don't have to humor me. It's alright, I'm quite capable of --"

"-- and then, after that, we're going to google _asexuality_ together and have a nice long talk about how there's nothing wrong with you, it's perfectly alright for you to have boundaries, and you are absolutely NOT broken."

"And then?" Jon said, hesitating by the doorway. The Admiral wound enthusiastically around his ankles, purring.

Georgie beamed, reclining. "And then, we team up and punch heterosexual society in the face."


End file.
